This invention relates to medical devices, and in particular to a guide for controlling the orientation or direction of a medical device.
Control of medical devices inside the body is a persistent problem. It is important to accurately control medical devices so that they quickly and effectively perform their diagnostic or therapeutic function, while minimizing collateral damage to surrounding tissue. A particular difficulty has been selectively controlling the direction in which a medical device is deployed from a location inside the body, for example while implanting a deep brain stimulator. With the equipment and methods presently available, the placement of a device in the brain frequently involves forming a straight path to the site from a burr hole in the skull. When several devices are placed in the brain, or when a single device is placed in several locations, a number of separate paths are made from the burr hole to the separate locations. It would be preferred to have a single main path from the burr hole with a plurality of branches extending to the separate locations. However there is no device that accurately and easily guides medical devices in a plurality of separate branches. Similar problems are encountered when navigating through other body tissues.
Another difficulty with the prior art devices is the accurate navigation of medical devices in body lumens and cavities. It is often desired to deploy a medical device in a body lumen or cavity in a particular direction, or to make contact in a particular orientation, for example with the needles used in the delivery of gene therapy, particularly in the heart.